British C-class submarine

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HMS C38
Class overview
Name	C-class
Builders	Vickers, Barrow; HM Dockyard Chatham
Operators	Royal Navy
Preceded by	B class
Succeeded by	D class
Subclasses	Group 1 : C-1 — C-18 Group 2 : C-19 — C-38
In commission	30 October 1906–1922
Completed	38
Lost	10
Retired	28
General characteristics
Type	Submarine
Displacement	Group 1 : 287 long tons (292 t) surfaced 316 long tons (321 t) submerged Group 2 : 290 long tons (295 t) surfaced 320 long tons (325 t) submerged
Length	143 ft 2 in (43.64 m)
Beam	13 ft 6 in (4.11 m)
Propulsion	600 hp (450 kW) Vickers petrol engine, 200 hp electric motor, single propeller
Speed	Group 1 : 12 kn (22 km/h; 14 mph) surfaced 7 kn (13 km/h; 8.1 mph) submerged Group 2 : 13 kn (24 km/h; 15 mph) surfaced 8 kn (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) submerged
Range	Group 1 : 1,500 nmi (2,800 km) at 7 kn (13 km/h; 8.1 mph) surfaced 50 nmi (93 km) at 4.5 kn (8.3 km/h; 5.2 mph) submerged Group 2: 2,000 nmi (3,700 km) at 7 kn (13 km/h; 8.1 mph) surfaced 55 nmi (102 km) at 5 kn (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) submerged
Complement	16
Armament	2 × 18-inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes (2 torpedoes)

The British C-class submarines were the last class of petrol engined submarines of the Royal Navy and marked the end of the development of the Holland class in the Royal Navy. Thirty-eight were constructed between 1905 and 1910 and they served through World War I.

With limited endurance and only a ten per cent reserve of buoyancy over their surface displacement, they were poor surface vessels, but their spindle shaped hull made for good underwater performance compared to their contemporaries.